Fender Guitar Issues on 360

[Zero80Rocker]

I've been playing on and off today and running into some strangeness with the Fender guitar that came with my 360 version of RB.

The issue in question is when there's a rapid sequence of notes, I can hit 3 of them but the 4th always misses and the strummer feels like it jams a bit. I have noticed the strummer on the guitar has a mushy feeling.

I thought it was just me getting used to RB so I didn't think much about it but I am consistently missing the 4th or 5th note due to the mushiness of the strummer.

I switched to the guitar I got with GH2 and I have no problems whatsoever. I can hit a very fast sequence of repeated notes just fine. I then switched back to the new Fender and again, the 4th or 5th consecutive note misses.

I have been analyzing this over and over again and I'm starting to think that something is wrong with the strummer on this Fender and that it cannot keep up with the rate of the notes. Slower notes are fine. Again, the old GH2 guitar works flawlessly.

I was wondering if anyone else has noticed this and whether this is a faulty guitar I have or whether the new Fender is just mushier and I have to deal with it? I've been trying to hit the notes for the last hour and there's no way I can hit more than 3.. it won't register the 4th or 5th as if it's lagging or just getting stuck or not registering the strum.

Again, the old guitar has no issues so this is not a problem with calibration. I'm just left to ponder whether this is a mechanical issue with the guitar or that's just how the new guitar feels and I for some reason can't adapt to it. :(

Doesn't seem to be a software problem as the old guitar works fine.

[Ramma2]

Yes, I am having the same issue, exactly. No matter how I strum, hard or soft, it won't register notes in quick succession. GH2 guitar works fine.

[SniklaCelaDelyK]

i also have the same problem. no matter what i do, the faster notes won't all register. even in the freaking hard tutorial it skipped notes i was legitimately hitting. i work at circuit city where we have an old demo explorer guitar that i borrowed to see if the same thing worked for me. sure thing, that old demo controller that's been through dozens of people performed better than the brand new one! i really hope they recall the guitars soon, cuz i love the guitar....i just wish it worked.

[Angry_Pirate]

My guitar runs perfectly. Had 100% runs on many songs using the up/down strum method. The guitar either isn't for you or has issues.

[espher]

Haven't had any problems myself.

[SniklaCelaDelyK]

it's probably an issue with the guitars...the guitar at our best buy wouldn't work at all unless you strummed up the entire time. seems to me that there may be the same "mushy" thing that i read about earlier.

[Zero80Rocker]

it's probably an issue with the guitars...the guitar at our best buy wouldn't work at all unless you strummed up the entire time. seems to me that there may be the same "mushy" thing that i read about earlier.

Kinda relieved I'm not the only one but also sad at the same time. I guess I'll call into support tomorrow and see if I can get a replacement guitar.

[Zero80Rocker]

I'm finding I have to strum up and down alternately when there are several notes in succession.

I totally failed "Should I Stay or Should I Go" the first time I tried it, and that was on medium. Otherwise I love the feel of the guitar and am really enjoying the game. FYI, I am using the wireless guitar for PS3, but am sure I know the problem you speak of (and I don't have a GH2 guitar to use instead).

Yeah, I normally do downward strums only, but I can't hit these streaks even with an up and down strum. The strums aren't registering fast enough. I'm guessing an issue with the strum registering (ie. the registers are too slow) or a problem with the spring (ie. the note registers when the strummer returns to dead center and the spring is too mushy to come back fast enough). I was comparing my GH2 guitar and the Fender and the spring is a lot harder on the GH2 guitar.

[Zero80Rocker]

Forget it, I used the EA warranty form to request a replacement guitar. Hopefully the new one doesn't have this issue.

[jmmartinprov1]

I have to agree, I loved the guitar in the world tour they did, but I am having some serious trouble with it!! I used the Les Paul Today for the Metallica Pack and it was fine. I guess it may need broken in, But I am not sure!! I am not 100% sold on the strat!! We shall See I am going to start a career with it and try it out!!

[rockstardan]

the strum bar on the guitar is the biggest POS ive seen. before/after the hotfix- it doesnt matter. my strum bar isnt centered and is closer to the down strum position. there is no click at all on a downstrum, while there is on an upstrum. its like instead of strumming im just pushing down on the strumbar and hoping it will register. its about 75% effective, and thats using more force that should be needed to strum a stupid piece of plastic.

I cant believe that 2 hours of playing easy songs with calm strumming patterns could cause such a thing. Great piece of hardware; A+

[SniklaCelaDelyK]

My guitar runs perfectly. Had 100% runs on many songs using the up/down strum method. The guitar either isn't for you or has issues.
it's probably an issue with the guitars...the guitar at our best buy wouldn't work at all unless you strummed up the entire time. seems to me that there may be the same "mushy" thing that i read about earlier.

[el_pablo65]

I'm finding I have to strum up and down alternately when there are several notes in succession.

I totally failed "Should I Stay or Should I Go" the first time I tried it, and that was on medium. Otherwise I love the feel of the guitar and am really enjoying the game. FYI, I am using the wireless guitar for PS3, but am sure I know the problem you speak of (and I don't have a GH2 guitar to use instead).

[Zero80Rocker]

the strum bar on the guitar is the biggest POS ive seen. before/after the hotfix- it doesnt matter. my strum bar isnt centered and is closer to the down strum position. there is no click at all on a downstrum, while there is on an upstrum. its like instead of strumming im just pushing down on the strumbar and hoping it will register. its about 75% effective, and thats using more force that should be needed to strum a stupid piece of plastic.

I cant believe that 2 hours of playing easy songs with calm strumming patterns could cause such a thing. Great piece of hardware; A+

Wow, you're lucky. At least you have a click in one direction. I don't have a click in either direction. It registers 100% in both directions for slow notes. It registers 100% up but only 50% down when hitting faster notes. GH2 x-plorer works flawlessly. I've moved over to the GH2 guitar. Screw the solo buttons. The old guitar is better.

[SniklaCelaDelyK]

Forget it, I used the EA warranty form to request a replacement guitar. Hopefully the new one doesn't have this issue.
where did you find that warranty form? i think i'm gonna try that as well

[jackcheng]

where did you find that warranty form? i think i'm gonna try that as well

http://support.ea.com/cgi-bin/ea.cfg/php/enduser/rockband.php

[Qizarek]

Mine broke after 1 song. The mushiness got worse and stuck in the down position.

[HeXcoda]

I primarily upstrum, so needless to say, after 4 hours it got jammed in the up position. It'll usually stay stuck there for a note or half a note before finally returning to neutral.

This can't be how HMX intends it to be. The whole point of a strum bar is to rapidly move from neutral to up or down and back again. On repeaters, eventually it just gets jammed up and won't go back, so I miss note after note unless I manually move it back or ease up and let it fall back after awhile.

I've got my replacement in the mail... but if it too hates going back to neutral on its own, Houston, we have a problem!

[Emowii]

There is a simply answer to all of this talk about the strum bar. It sucks, and it was poorly designed. No ifs ands or buts about it. How this thing made it through testing is a question I'll be asking myself for years.


Harmonix is going to have a flood of returns for new ones, and eventually they'll end up modifying the strum bar to be more like the old ones. Great job fellas!



Also, people, please stop talking about a patch to fix this. It has nothing to do with the game code, and it's purely about the guitar and the strum bar wearing out or not registering notes. That cannot be fiexed by a patch.

[Sandm4n]

I had the same problems with my Strat at first. Then I learned how to play it, and I have no problems with those notes. It is just something that you have to get used to. My Girlfriend was having problems playing "Welcome Home", and when I walked into the room she was like "Look at this, I cant get any of these. its impossible on this guitar" I came up right after her and got 96%. She switched back to the Explorer, and she has no problem. Personally, I cant use the Explorer anymore. Im SOLD on the strat

[th3darkmarket]

Gyro in our guitar is iffy.. sometimes we'll get the energy power and sometimes not, and when I plugged in the Xplorer I enabled it everytime I rose the neck.

[rockstardan]

Mine broke after 1 song. The mushiness got worse and stuck in the down position.

this is quality

[Eastwood]

I would gladly have the clicking sound back in exchange for an Explorer quality strum bar. I plugged my explorer in last night because I was hoping it was the game after the hot fix. Got 100% on should I stay or should I go on Hard. Switched back to strat, almost failed out. The problem is that when I hit down, it registers twice. Even in the menus and dashboard!

[k_luva]

The silence about this from HMX is..... <insert crickets here>

I ended up going to EA for a replacement....since it will be the same flippin guitar...I expect to be sending it back after a 3 hour rock out period as well.

[blazedbishop]

I had the same problems with my Strat at first. Then I learned how to play it, and I have no problems with those notes. It is just something that you have to get used to. My Girlfriend was having problems playing "Welcome Home", and when I walked into the room she was like "Look at this, I cant get any of these. its impossible on this guitar" I came up right after her and got 96%. She switched back to the Explorer, and she has no problem. Personally, I cant use the Explorer anymore. Im SOLD on the strat

Johnny!!! You may be right about your guitar but mine WONT strum up period. Hell I cant even navigate the menus (go up after I go down) with the strum bar or the dpad! Other than that the downstrum works great and I can get most no problem at all except the faster ones where up and down are needed. It's a P.O.S IMO and i'll be sending in for a new one!

[MrNazraq]

I played for about, well, 12 hours yesterday. Mostly on drums. When my wife came home, she jumped on drums and I picked up the Strat. After about 5 songs, the strum bar started sticking in the downward position.

But, I fixed it! No, I didn't have to open up the guitar. Basically, you have to change the way you play it. You can't just mash the strumbar down like the other GH guitars. That'll cause the bar to mash into the padding and get stuck there. You have to hold the strum bar between your index finger and thumb (as if it were a pick) and STRUM down (which also means that if you want to strum again, you have to pull the bar up, JUST AS IF IT WERE A PICK!).

Please note that after I encountered the problem (and failed a song because of it), I didn't try to use a lot of force. Basically, it stuck once, then I changed my style of playing. I think if you're continually mashing it into the downward position, you may get it stuck there permanently...

[SenatorIvy]

Yeah, it seems as though they sacrificed usability for silent operation, which doesn't make much sense, as while in Guitar Hero there are 2 guitarists clicking away, in Rock Band it won't matter if your guitar clicks, because there's some yutz right next to you wailing on plastic with sticks.

Overall I am not happy with the Rock Band guitar, and I end up using my Guitar Hero one instead.

[xenopherus]

I too am having odd issues with the strat. I played for almost 5 hours straight yesterday, and I still am getting the hang of it. Mine will work fine, but only if I play it a certain way. I've found I need to "tap" the strum bar on fast notes, almost like pressing a button. I tend to keep my hand and thumb totally stiff and rigid and that usually works. I tried everything other people have said, especially the "strum" technique. But I've found the rigid tapping works best.

While navigating the XBL windows, I noticed how very sensitive my strumbar is (heh heh). With just one gentle press, it skipped past a couple window selections. I don't know if this is the case with everyone else, but it's how mine works. Maybe some people are just pressing it too hard, so it registers that you're pressing it slower of faster than you actually are. I had to switch to my X-plorer in order to be able to play songs on expert, but noticed I was having a slightly more difficult time hitting notes with that too. So some of it probably has to do with the new smaller shaped notes.

Hitting overdrive with the guitar is wonky too. It would either activate when I didn't want it to, or not activate no matter how much I tilted, shook and jostled it. I tried tilting the guitar down, then up and that seemed to work. It's not all the time that it won't activate, just every now and then.

Getting used to the strat is almost like playing a real guitar. A lot of time you have to be extremely exact how you play, which for me is frustrating because I'm a sloppy player. I'll wait to turn mine into warranty just to see if it's really defective or if I just need more getting used to it.

[Goldenfox]

Yeah, I've been experiencing the same issue. Guitar seems to work great on the slower stuff, but anything faster than an eighth note, and it lags BADLY. I've been working with the calibration all morning, using the Queens of the Stone Age song and "Detroit Rock City" as my test subjects. With the A/V offset set to a postive 45 (45!!!!!!), I can 5-star the Queens of the Stone Age song. But with the same settings, the opening hammer-ons in "Detroit Rock City" don't register right, and neither do the faster triplet-eighthts that succeed them (got through the opening without missing a note ONCE... and on GH2 and GH3, I've beaten the expert levels and 5-starred almost everything... trust me, this is not a user-end issue). There's something seriously weird about the new Fenders. I love the feel of them, but if they're not going to work, what can you do?